


A thousand stars

by SiobhanMcG



Series: Weekend drabbles [1]
Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Weekend drabbles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-22
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2019-04-26 06:29:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14396262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SiobhanMcG/pseuds/SiobhanMcG
Summary: I noticed I am in the bad habit of writing random drabbles during my weekends and then forgetting about them. So here we go: the first of a series. Also my first go at Kate at all (you might have noticed she's a bit inconsistent in the series so I'm just making her up as we go).





	A thousand stars

Their first meeting hadn’t been as special as one might imagine- It had just been another day during which the earth found itself in mortal peril and he-  _ she  _ had swooped in and saved the day once more. Kate hadn’t had time to be either surprised or amazed, she had become accustomed to the clumsy flair of the Doctor flailing about. It was only later that she found herself contemplating the most recent face he-  _ she _ , Kate kept correcting herself, had taken on. Youthful once more and expressive as always.  _ It wouldn’t be hard to get used to this face. _

*

_ Exhausting _ . That was one way to describe her. They had found themselves in the middle of some kind of intra-dimensional mishap, and all the Doctor cared about was how she knew her alternative self would have an  _ eyepatch _ . As if the threat of their respective realities collapsing into one enormous bang wasn’t remotely more interesting- But no, all she cared for now was eyepatches.  _ Bloody eyepatches _ . 

*

It had been an otherwise quiet Sunday afternoon when a loud, screeching sound had caused Kate Stewart to grab her gun and phone, ready to save the world once more. But it had turned out there were no alien invasions of any kind to fight off today.

“You came here for what?”

“I thought I’d help you out gardening.” The Doctor shrugged, hands buried deep in her pockets as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

“Why.” She tried not to sound too exasperated, but she remembered the last time the Doctor had crashed into her garden.

“You mentioned needing to weed the garden-” she started toying with the sleeves of her jacket “So I thought I’d help.”

“That was 6 months ago.” Her voice is involuntarily clipped, the circumstances of their last meeting still fresh on her mind.  _ It's not like you'd easily forget a horde of Vashta Nerada crawling around in the London underground. Or worse- _ But her stream of thought is interrupted by the Doctor.

“Oh? Was it?” She turned on her heels and started to walk back to the Tardis “I can come back then time.”

“NO!” Kate shouted in panic, the neighbours are probably watching her now. “There’s no need to, none at all. Please stay.” A little bit of sweat broke from her brow.

"Is everything okay?" The Doctor looked confused and Kate would be damned if she ever admitted she found it cute.  _ Very cute in fact. _

“You landed on the strawberries.” Mild annoyance crept into her tone- She had spent ages looking after those strawberries before they got brutally flattened by a certain box literally falling out of the bright blue sky. But the Doctor looked remorseful now and Kate couldn't help to feel a little sorry. “You can help me now-” She pointed at the patch she had been working on “I’m planting new strawberries.” 

Her eyes lit up instantly and it wasn't for the first time that Kate noticed them, and just like all the other times, she couldn't make out if they were sad or happy.  _ Probably both, _ she thought. Lately, she had started noticing a lot about of things about the Doctor, but it was a thought she refused to follow up on. Instead, Kate handed her a shovel and tried not to focus on the way her nose crinkled when she smiled and how adorable she found it.

  
*

Kate had always dreamt of travelling in the Tardis, even if she would be damned to openly admit it. Unceremoniously being dumped in the pool whilst falling out of an airplane --not for the first time and she feared not the last time either-- was not how she had imagined it though.

“Kate!”

A flurry of blonde hair is dashing towards her at top speed just as she managed to heave herself onto the edge of the pool. Before she can react or process what just happened, a pair of lithe arms wrap themselves around her, pulling her close. 

Kate is happy her heart is still racing from her fall, because the Doctor's body is warm and soft, and fits perfectly against her own. She can feel the beat of her hearts through her drenched blouse and it is strange yet comforting, so she allows herself to lean into the touch. The Doctor is still gripping her tightly and Kate can feel shallow breathing tickling against her ear. As always, the other woman smells like a mixture of unique things Kate will never learn about. But underneath the aromas of foreign galaxies and the dust of a thousand stars, there is a familiar scent. She savours it, not knowing when they'll meet again.

The water is starting to slowly soak into the other woman’s clothes and the seconds are starting to stretch out while her heart still hammers in her chest.

“You can stop hugging me now.” She says softly, but her arms still wrapped around the Doctor's waist.

“You scared me so much-” She sniffles. “I’m never going to stop hugging you.” Her voice is small and, as Kate suddenly realises, for the first time she also sounds scared. So she doesn’t reply and instead only pulls her closer.

*

Kate isn’t quite sure why, but she finds herself in the company of a certain alien more and more often- and not because the world is facing unavoidable doom. Sometimes the Doctor helps her with the gardening, other times they play bridge and one time she even cooked for Kate and the boys. Luckily it had been one time only. Even the boys are getting used to her being around. 

After one particularly gruelling day at work, she finds the Doctor and her two sons tangled up in a snoring heap of limbs on her couch; the X-Box still whirring softly with at least three different types of alien technology soldered onto it.  _ A treat for Osgood. _ The sight makes her smile softly before she tiptoes to the cupboard to find the largest quilt she owns. They look peaceful together, it’s a sight that warms her heart. Kate can’t deny she occasionally feels guilty for how little time she spends with her family, the divorce hadn’t come as a surprise to her either. But she is happy now, with her job and her family, which is all that matters. 

Driven by a sudden impulse she reaches down and tugs a stray strand of hair behind her ear, causing her to wake up- eyes still drowsy with sleep, but she smiles when she realises it’s Kate in front of her. She pulls Kate down on the couch with them and curls into her, before whispering:

“Welcome home.”


End file.
